D&D - Sourcebook - Darwin's World Lost Paradise - Rpgobjects
D&D - Sourcebook - Darwin's World Lost Paradise - Rpgobjects
D&D - Sourcebook - Darwin's World Lost Paradise - Rpgobjects
by David Jarvis,
Dominic Covey, and Chris Davis
Created By
David Jarvis
Interior Artwork:
J. Longenbaugh, David Jarvis
Cover Artwork:
David Jarvis
Northwest Map:
Dominic Covey
Editing:
Andy Rau, Charles Baize
Contributions by:
Charles Rice, Chris Swenson
Playtesting:
Chris Derner, Chris Hoover, Ryan
Kelley, Ethan Ripplinger, Aaron
Wiggins, Dominc Covey.
www.RPGObjects.com
www.DarwinRPG.com
Table of Contents Eden, and that’s only a week’s journey north of us here in Hope. The
time of the white death is beginning again, and I’m not sure we’ve
stocked up enough meat and supplies to last this one out. So many
The Purity Corp is already the single most powerful clan outside the
United Combine; they lay claim to every hill, tree, river, and rock
between the great river and the Sea-Tac Spawning Pits, calling the
people are going to die. It makes me wonder sometimes what the region the “Pure Lands.”
Chapter 1: History 3 point of living is. Of course that just shows how twisted they really are. The so-
Before the Fall 3 Hope…we live in Hope, the one thing that so few of us have
anymore—I wonder if anyone would consider that ironic. Five
called “Pure Lands” happen to be the most perverse, corrupted,
radiated stretch of wilderness in the Northwest, aside from the
The State of the Union 21 infants dead in the span of a single moon cycle, and that’s not even Ghost Wastes of Umatilla to the east.
the worst part: they came out of the womb deformed. It was un- The elders say that before the Fall, there were military bases in
Chapter 2: Characters 25 natural. And they weren’t the first. the area once known as Puget Sound. Great metal ships of war—
New Occupations 25 Three moon cycles ago, Luke and Sara Green had a baby. They designed to float both on and under the water—were anchored in
said it was a boy, but I couldn’t take my eyes off the scales on its the natural harbors of Puget Sound to guard against enemies to the
Advanced Classes 27 arms and the claws on its feet long enough to check the gender. west, beyond the great poisoned sea. They were all destroyed by
Epic Classes 35 It lived, but not for long—but it didn’t die because of sickness or great spears of fire that obliterated everything.
anything like that. Luke said Sara was nursing the child and… well, My great-grandfather said the fiery spears were called “nuclear
New Artifacts 39 the way Luke tells it, the baby attacked and almost killed her. bombs.” My friend Joe “Walks-the-Path” Smith says they were
Chapter 3: Denizens 45 Now, I’ve known Luke for a long time, and can’t remember one
time he’s lied to me, but a child attacking its mother is a hard tale
“gourds of ash,” dropped by the Great Spirit in a final shaking of
the world. Joe belongs to a tribe of people who call themselves the
Origins 45 to swallow. Luke says he did what needed to be done to protect his Chinook Indians.
The United Combine 45 wife—and I can’t say as I blame him. I didn’t ask for the specifics of
what he did.
One day I asked Joe what “Indian” meant. He said he didn’t
know; it was a term white people gave his ancestors a long time
The Purity Corp 53 All I know for certain is they didn’t mark the grave. ago, when people still cared about the color of a person’s skin. I
The Hand of Jehovah 58 Old lady Harrington has started her preachin’ again. She says
the deaths and deformities are all signs of the end. Some people are
said the Purity Corp still cares about skin color, and Joe told me the
Purists aren’t people; they’re something else now.
Tillamook Trading Caravans 64 starting to believe the crazy bitch, too. Some of the more “rational” I think Joe’s right.
The Mountain Walkers 70 council members are tellin’ me that as the leader of this town, it’s
my duty to do something about it.
When I was young, my mother taught me to read and write. I was
luckier than most, I suppose. I expect it’s one of the reasons I was
The Chinook Indians 74 “Put her and anyone else who’s talkin’ nonsense out, Duncan,” put in charge of Hope—I’m one of the few people who knows how
Other Native Indian Groups 78 they say. I think they’re all fucking buzzards looking for the next
carcass to feed on. I can’t sit here and say I agree with Marissa
to run the place. My mom tried to teach me math and other things
you can’t find in books or learning disks anymore, but I didn’t learn
The Pale Riders 80 Harrington and her radical views, but I won’t put her or anyone much. She died of pneumonia when I was just a boy.
The Walking Dead 84 else outside these gates just for speakin’ their mind.
You don’t put entire families out into the wilderness unless things
One of the things my mother did teach me, however, was that
history is important. She used to say it was important to remember
Sentinels 87 get violent. At least that’s how it’s always been in Hope. That’s how what happened in the past, and even more important to write down
River Folk 91 we’ve always lived. Strength, unity, and perseverance: these ideals
have been the cornerstone of this community from the beginning.
the things that took place in the present. Mom said it was of great
consequence for the future.
Mutant Society 94 That’s how we’ve survived. I think I understand what she was trying to tell me. History can
Until now. teach us things about our past, so that we don’t repeat the mistakes
Chapter 4: Places 95 The truth, whether I like it or not, is that this very well could of our ancestors. At least that’s the idea, isn’t it? Mom seemed to
Specific Locations 96 be the end of the road for the human race. Not because some old think so.
woman says it’s so. Not because it’s happening in Hope. Because it’s I’ve decided to write a journal. I’m going to try and piece
Chapter 5: Terrors 132 happening everywhere. together the past and tell what I know of the present, so maybe,
Mutated Animals 132 I’ve heard rumors from all parts of the United Combine—stories
from as far south as Crater City and from all the way up in Eden,
some time in the future, someone will read it and show it to others.
And, in reading this journal, maybe people will try to figure out a
Northwest Flora 143 north of the dreaded Sea-Tac Spawning Pits, and they’re all the way to keep from stepping down the path we currently walk.
Bio-Engineered Monsters 144 same.
People are beginning to mutate.
Or maybe they’ll just use it for toilet paper. I don’t know. But I’m
going to write it anyway.
Tecesni 149 Folks are starting to get scared. I hear that some are even
The Spawn Army 157 starting to leave the protection of the U.C. to fend for themselves, or - Duncan Clark
Chapter 1: There isn’t a lot I can tell you about how things were before everything fell apart. This generation has no
memory of those days. We only have stories, myths told to us by our parents and grandparents—and even
History of the
they weren’t alive in those times.
I can’t tell you much about the lands to the south or east. I’ve never been out of this part of the world, and
I only know a handful of people who have ventured into those lands. Some never returned, and the ones who
Lost Paradise did…
Well, they don’t like to talk about the things they’ve seen.
I can’t tell you how many years have passed. Nobody counts the passage of time like that now. It isn’t
important. Tracking hours, minutes, and days doesn’t put food in the mouths of our children. Time doesn’t
The Northwest protect us from the creatures that lurk outside the city gates, nor does it form trade agreements and
alliances for protection against people who would destroy what we’ve worked so hard to achieve.
Time is a useless relic of the ancient world.
Before the Fall We know that the domain of our forebears was mighty. We see evidence of their former glory in the mess
they left behind. I’ve looked down on the ruins of the city our elders call “Portland” in sheer awe of the
knowledge they must have possessed to be able to build the things they did.
The Lewis and Clark Bio- Two massive cracked and broken domes can be seen from any place near the ruins of the city. One stands
on the south side of the Columbia, in the center of Portland. The other is on the Vancouver side of the river.
Dome Complex Huge metal tubes connect the two domes. Well, they used to, I assume—now they’re broken and shattered
The Lewis and Clark Bio-Dome project was a truly about midway across the Columbia gorge. Someone once told me those tubes housed floating cars that
monumental undertaking—an effort to appease ferried people back and forth from one dome to another.
both corporate greed and consumer fancy on a scale I can’t say it’s true, but it sure would’ve been a sight to see.
beyond anything previously attempted in the United Some say there are also intact tunnels leading under what’s left of the once-mighty river, but I haven’t
States. Through a series of ambitious construction gotten close enough to verify the stories. The Purity Corp maintains an outpost on the Vancouver side of the
projects, clever marketing drives, and appeals to river, just a few miles north of the Dome. They patrol the riverside regularly, so it’s usually pretty dangerous
public safety, the robotics industry managed to satisfy to go anywhere near the old city. And that’s not even counting the walking dead who roam the ruins.
both their customers’ love of the wilderness and their People who know the legends about the ruins of Portland say that at one point, the city was filled with
corporate need for profit. The twin bio-domes of people. A man could get anything he could ever want or need there. Life for our ancient ancestors was
Portland and Vancouver were the pinnacle of these good. And there were more cities like Portland than there are stars in the sky.
efforts—technological utopias that both safeguarded
and imprisoned the citizens of the Northwest in the - Duncan Clark
years before the Fall.
As the wilderness and forests around them slowly
deteriorated, citizens of the Northwest states became at all with the corporate moguls in the robotics then re-vitalize the target areas and make them safe
increasingly obsessed with the preservation of their industry. Their quandary was obvious: how could for humans to visit.
beloved outdoors. The masses balked at the notion they keep the population alive and consuming their At first the solution didn’t translate well into
of entering any structure which alienated them from products while at the same time giving them access spreadsheets or promising financial projections.
the mountains, lakes, rivers, and forests that had to an environment that would kill them without the Corporate accountants complained that the project
traditionally defined the Northwest. protection of bio-domes and other shelters? The wasn’t cost effective. But when they considered the
The prospect of losing millions of dollars annually answer was surprisingly simple: they would create possibilities of tax relief from the government—and
because most people in the Northwest sector didn’t expansion domes to cover designated portions of the the lucrative new robotics and development contracts
want to give up the great outdoors didn’t sit well dwindling wilderness; conservation projects would that would be made necessary by the project—the
Union The first surface “towns” were constructed as bunker dwellers, hungrily preying on new human
extensions of the bunkers and fallout shelters that settlements struggling to establish some measure of
had so faithfully housed the people after the Fall. security and stability. Bandits roamed the wilderness
Those first buildings weren’t marvels of construction.
Living in the Northwest In most cases they were little more than makeshift
in force, taking whatever they wanted from their
victims. Time passed, and slowly the settlements
Life in the post-apocalyptic Northwest of the Twisted shacks built from whatever raw materials could be grew. Walls were built to protect against the dangers
Earth is a throwback to more rugged times,
before the age of industry and invention
came and revolutionized the way people It would be a great understatement to say that life is a struggle in these parts. Between the strange creatures that
lived. Now, what’s left of the human race roam the wilds, the lack of a steady supply of food and water, and an ever-growing list of enemies, it’s a miracle our
exists in tiny islands of civilization in a sea children live to reach puberty. We endure in small communities that work together for the continued survival of all.
of blasted, radiated wilderness, clutching But when I say “we,” I mean the United Combine. The U.C. is a large group of people that form a loose cluster of
desperately to what little they have while clans in this part of the world. We share our resources and knowledge with each other in the hope that we can survive
the world slowly dies around them. People long enough to forge some kind of stability in this region. Those of us that don’t have herds of helkan or angoose
band together for mutual protection from the trade with the Mountain Walkers for the meat and clean water that so often only they seem to be able to provide.
world outside the walls of the towns they The Mountain Walkers are a clan of their own. They know the safest places to get water, where wild life still grazes,
live in. and also where to find plants that are edible or have medicinal uses. The clan guards its secrets well. Some say they
Long gone are the days when people could can turn invisible and move through the wild lands without leaving any trace of their passing. Mountain Walkers are
get the things they needed with any measure a quiet bunch, though, not usually prone to conversation with people they trust, much less with someone they’ve just
of convenience. Automation isn’t even a met. The odds are that if a ’Walker doesn’t know you, you’ll never be aware of the fact that one’s even been within ten
concept anymore; it’s a myth. The people feet of you, unless he wants you to know.
of the Northwest survive in a world that is Right now, things are tough. We have plenty of enemies. The Purity Corp is our largest, most dangerous enemy,
a mere shadow of its former technological but there are others. Several large gangs of bandits, the largest of which are known as the “Pale-Raiders,” roam the
might. The last Great War all but wiped wilderness, assaulting our towns and attacking us along our trade routes. Some just want our supplies, but others
out the great centers of art, industry want more. They want our women and children. I hear tell of cities in the south where there are creatures that feed on
and learning, leaving the survivors with the flesh and blood of children, where women are sold for breeding purposes. I don’t know if that’s true, but I do know
whatever they were able to pack away into the Sentinels that patrol the southern lands around Crater City are encountering more and more of these strange
the fallout shelters and bunker complexes— humanoids. Jonah, one of the Mountain Walkers who trades with us, says that these creatures are actually mutated
which wasn’t much. What knowledge and human beings. He says that’s the direction the human race is headed.
technology is left on the surface world is I pray he’s not right.
lost amidst the wreckage and ruins of the
great domes, hidden behind the sealed doors - Duncan Clark
of long forgotten bunker complexes and
Airman Apothecary
New Occupations Even in the wastelands of the Twisted Earth, the
ancient human dream of flight has found fruit in a
The apothecary is an individual who deals specifically
with the wide variety of plants in the Northwest and
Characters in Darwin’s World have many dedicated group of men and women. These airmen who is able to make medicines from them using low-
opportunities to make a living in the wastes. Whether have a love for the flying machines of the Ancients technology methods. In addition to knowing how to
by escorting caravans, mining for corium, or trading and serve the People’s Army by building, repairing, extract vital medicines from plants, the apothecary is
with the Twisted Earth’s myriad settlements, most maintaining, and even flying the assorted aircraft that well versed in ancient farming methods; he may even
characters pursue a particular profession as a means have proven to be such vital assets to the Tillamook have some knowledge of “lost” scientific agricultural
of providing for themselves. Occupations are a great Trading Caravans. techniques such as cross-pollination and gene splicing.
way to define the method by which a character makes Airmen tend to be a bit quirky, and although The apothecary relies on his old-world knowledge not
her living in the Twisted Earth and the skills and they provide a vital service to their clan, they are only to help his people, but to create new strains of
training she’s acquired in the course of doing so. considered to be just a bit crazy by members of the plants—plants healthy and strong enough to thrive in
Starting occupations, according to the d20 Modern People’s Army who don’t understand how the great the Twisted Earth and able to be harvested and put to
rules, represent the life experience a character has flying machines work. The most famous (and possibly good use by future generations.
attained before beginning play, as well as how she the most devoted) of all airmen are those known as Skills: Choose two of the following as permanent
makes a living during play. Starting occupations are Kamikaze (“divine wind”). All People’s Army airmen class skills. Craft (chemical), Craft (pharmaceutical),
vengeance. When a settlement is targeted for forced Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Investigate (Int),
conversion, the Templar is called to carry out the will Knowledge (current events, theology and philosophy)
of Jehovah in the Twisted Earth. (Int), Listen (Wis), Perform (Cha), Read/Write (any),
Research (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Speak Language
Requirements (any).
To qualify to become a Templar, a character must Skill Points at Each Level: 5 + Int modifier.
fulfill the following criteria.
Base Attack Bonus: +1. Class Features
Skills: Intimidate 6 ranks, Knowledge (theology The following features pertain to the Templar
and philosophy) 6 ranks. advanced class.
Allegiance: Hand of Jehovah. Commanding Tone: The Templar gains the ability
to speak with (he believes) the full authority of God.
Class Information When using this ability, the Templar gains a +1 bonus
The following information pertains to the Templar to Intimidate checks for each level of Templar he has
advance class. attained.
Carefully chosen are those worthy enough to join Blessing: The Templar has the ability to inspire
the military ranks of the Hand of Jehovah. These Hit Dice: 1d8.
Action Points: The Templar receives a number of others of the same faith by simply touching them
soldiers are selected and trained to uphold and protect and uttering a prayer. Using the Blessing ability
the religious values of the faction. Templars are action points equal to 6 + one-half his character level,
rounded down, each time he attains a level in this grants to the recipient a +1 morale bonus to attack
garrisoned in towns loyal to the Hand of Jehovah, rolls, damage rolls, and saving throws for a number
ensuring that the peace is kept and that influence from class.
Class Skills: The Templar’s class skills are as of rounds equal to 1d4 + the Templar’s class level +
heretic outsiders is held to a minimum. the Templar’s Charisma modifier. Only targets who
In addition to performing “peacekeeping” duties, follows. Concentration (Con), Craft (structural) (Int),
Decipher Script (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather share the Hand of Jehovah allegiance may receive this
the Templar is considered to be the vessel of God’s blessing.
Abel moved cautiously down into the valley, leading The Crusader is the post-apocalyptic version of
his horse behind him as he picked his way along the a missionary, a lone warrior priest traveling the
rocky switchback. He’d seen a line of smoke rising wastelands bringing the word of “God” to any who
from the eastern end of the vast valley and decided to might listen… but this missionary carries an array
go investigate. of weapons to use without mercy against those who,
It had been a year since Abel had been called by to him, prove to be agents of the Devil (“Scrag”).
God to leave the relative comforts of Moses Lake, The Crusader considers himself above any
striking out into the blasted lands on a never-ending restrictions that might be placed on the average
Crusade to bring the word of God to the heathen member of the Hand of Jehovah, maintaining that God
people of the Twisted Earth. During his wanderings, provides whatever he may need on his never-ending
Abel had met many strange people―most of them journey through the wastes of the Twisted Earth.
obvious agents of Scrag―living in degradation,
flaunting their physical mutations: sure signs that they
had fallen into sin and succumbed to the temptations Requirements
of the Evil One. Abel had done his best to teach the To qualify to become a Crusader, a character must
infidels of God’s power and His infinite grace, but in fulfill the following criteria.
the end was forced to spill their heathen blood all over Base Attack Bonus: +8.
the parched earth and purify their souls with fire. Feats: Iron Will.
It was the only way they could be saved. Abel tried Skills: Intimidate 13 ranks,
to reconcile the memory of their screams with the Knowledge (theology and
knowledge that he had saved them in the end…but it philosophy) 13 ranks.
still didn’t help him sleep at night. Special: Smite the Infidel.
He stopped for a moment, pulled a spy-glass out of Allegiance: Hand of Jehovah.
Chapter 3: May 3. I came up from the Desiccated Wastes to join the U.C., hoping for something better, a new life.
What I got was something else entirely. Instead of getting myself a nice piece of land far away from the
desert, here we sit, on the frontlines of a war that has the whole region up in arms. I can’t tell how long it’s
Denizens been going, or how long we’ll be here…but from the tired looks of the men I serve with, I don’t think an end
is near. Most of them are just boys. You’d be surprised—even the older-looking ones in the trenches are
of the really just kids. The war does that to them. Everyone gets old mighty fast on the front line.
Northwest supplies destined for the Lewis and Clark Bio-Dome real and robotic, with two objectives. The first and
Complex, and took their spoils to hidden compounds most important was the establishment of trade routes
Combine
minority—and it certainly didn’t stop them. Most such recon teams, especially those that ventured
Some formed activist groups and staged protests. into the southern lands, never returned from their
Others put up websites and monitored bulletin expeditions. Those who did return had either gone
boards that offered information about the world
beyond the borders of the United States. They took History insane from the things they had seen in the course
of their explorations or were dying from radiation
this “untainted” information public, hacking into Many long years after the Fall, the poisoning. In any case, they couldn’t provide much
U.S. news nets to broadcast their data over the United Combine emerged from the isolation of information about the lands of the “deep south.” Long,
airwaves, reaching out to all the sheep with what they scattered wilderness bunker complexes and survival hard years passed—dark years filled with sickness
called “doses of truth.” Still others became militant, compounds and began to explore and settle the and death—but the U.C. was eventually able to
embracing the label of “extremist” and venting their Northwest. They didn’t waste any time in setting establish some semblance of stability in the region.
frustration through violence. They bombed drug up lines of communication between the remaining The problems began when the U.C.’s leaders came
and robot manufacturing plants and raided weapons vaults. Armed scouts were sent out from “Eden” together to decide a future plan for the Combine.
facilities; they hijacked shipments of food and medical (the U.C.’s main bunker complex) on horses, both
- Duncan Clark
11; Rep +3; Str 14, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 14,
Cha 8. People of Note
Occupation and Background: Military, Visionary
Reinventor. Jeremiah Cole
Skills: Climb +4, Demolitions +5*, Disable Device Jeremiah Cole grew up inside the Eden bunker
+2*, Drive +6, Hide +6, Intimidate +8, Knowledge complex listening to the elders tell stories about
(ancient lore) +2, Knowledge (current events) +2, life before the Fall. He grew into adolescence with
Knowledge (mutant lore) +8*, Knowledge (tactics) his own vision of what life would be like on the
+10, Listen +4, Move Silently +6, Navigate +4, outside, and dreamed of the day when people would
Search +4, Speak Language (Unislang), Spot +4, finally adopt the teachings of his great-great-great
Survival +8, Treat Injury +8. grandfather, Alexander Cole. Jeremiah thought he
Feats: Armor Proficiency (light), Armor Proficiency understood why things weren’t already like that inside
(medium), Cautious*, Far Shot, Improved Critical the bunker—in the bunker, survival was paramount,
(Remington 700), Lightning Reflexes, Point Blank and people had to live a certain way in order to
Shot, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Post Apocalyptic survive. The white people who ran the complex did
Technology, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Weapon so because they had always done so; it was just how
Focus (Remington 700), Weapon Specialization things were. When they all went up to the surface,
(Remington 700). things would change. Jeremiah had to believe that
Mutations and Defects: None. they would. who had come to share his beliefs. They bided their
Possessions: Tactical vest, Remington 700, 40 But things didn’t change—at least, not the way he time for the first harvest season until a measure of
rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, two fragmentation wanted them to. Not at first. stability was achieved.
grenades, smoke grenade, rad tab, five ready meals, By the time Eden was founded, Jeremiah had But when he saw that the leaders of the faction
two light rods, two salt pills, two potassium iodide seen seventeen cycles pass inside the bunker. When that had begun calling itself the “United Combine”
tablets, holographic image projector, power cell, everyone finally emerged into the wilds of the weren’t going to adopt his ancestor’s values, Jeremiah
various other gear and personal possessions. Northwest, the young man already had two wives (of called the Council of the Remnants and demanded that
suitable ethnic heritage) and a following of people Douglas Reinhart explain why the Purity Corp wasn’t
being given its proper respect. The council session
Solomon. This guy is just crazy. Nuff’ said. Abel Karen was in Moses Lake with a contingent
Abel was once a high-ranking Templar in Solomon’s of Templars to collect monthly donations from
- Duncan Clark army. He held a command position in Moses Lake, surrounding settlements and to take them back to
and at one point was poised to become an Inquisitor— Enoch for redistribution. Problems cropped up with
but that all changed when he met one of Solomon’s a few of the expedition’s wagons and their departure
wives.
- Duncan Clark
was delayed for two days. Abel invited Karen to stay Solomon’s wives, she would pay the ultimate price.
at his home until the wagons could be repaired, and As for Abel, Solomon condemned him as a traitor
Karen accepted. During that short period of time, the and forced him to light the fires that would consume
two became quite close, and while they didn’t initially the woman he loved. He went on to strip the man
become romantic, a seed was planted in their hearts of all rank and possessions, save for a weapon and
that would eventually erupt in scandal. enough supplies to last three days in the wilderness.
Over the next harvest season, Karen traveled as After Karen’s execution, Solomon banished Abel
often as possible to Moses Lake under the pretense from all Hand of Jehovah lands, branding him with an
of collecting more donations. Each time, she and upside-down cross on his left cheek.
Abel spent hours behind the closed doors of his Abel took banishment hard. Serving the Hand of
home. Nobody really knew for sure if the two Jehovah had been the only way of life he had ever
ever committed adultery, but there was enough known. Everyone and everything that Abel had
circumstantial evidence to give those jealous of Abel’s assumed would always be there had suddenly been
success the ethical ammunition they needed to bring taken from him. As the cruelty of that fact sank in,
an inquisition down on his head. Abel began to despair. He lost count of the days he
Solomon himself made the trip to Moses Lake to spent wandering alone in the wastes. The pain of
preside over the trial of Karen and Abel. He listened his branding faded, but the nearly unbearable shame
with thinly-veiled rage as each of Abel’s detractors remained. Each time he tried to gain entry into a
gave his account of what they had seen transpire Hand of Jehovah settlement, he was turned away at
between the two, and while there was no real proof gunpoint.
of any wrong-doing, Solomon’s mind was clouded One day Abel climbed to the top of a hill and called The people who lived in the cabin nursed the
with jealousy and spite. He convicted both of them of out to God, praying for some respite from the harsh severely malnourished man back to health. As he
adultery in the eyes of God. reality of his fate. The only response he received was recovered, he taught them about the Hand of Jehovah
Abel had expected this; most people who were the howl of the wind mingled with the rumblings in and the ancient God that his people revered. By the
charged of adultery were convicted. What he didn’t his stomach. Abel cried out in anger and shook his fist time he was ready to leave, Abel understood that,
expect was the severity of the punishment they would at the sky… but as he turned away, he caught sight although he could never return to Moses Lake, Enoch,
both receive. of a line of smoke rising above the trees off to his or any other Hand of Jehovah settlement, he could still
Solomon ordered Karen burned at the stake for her left. He scrambled toward it, but didn’t get far. The hold fast to the tenets of the faith. More importantly,
crime, declaring that her betrayal of Solomon was arduous climb to the mountaintop had taken its toll on Abel could do the work of God by bringing His
a betrayal of the entire community. For betraying his weak and starving body. Abel collapsed just as he message to the people of the wasteland.
the trust and failing to set an example as one of came into sight of an ancient log cabin.
Walkers Mountain Walkers gather once during the harvest from the bunker complexes; some say they’ve been
cycle for a weeklong festival called the Gathering. around even longer than that. Most people have only
The Gathering is an opportunity for ‘Walkers to come heard about the Mountain Walkers, as ‘Walkers tend
to keep to themselves, only venturing into settlements
History together, share goods, swap “fish” stories and discuss
significant events across the region. The Gathering to trade or possibly take on an apprentice.
More commonly known as just ‘Walkers, these rugged is held in a different location each harvest cycle, and In spite of the clan’s withdrawn nature, the
people are rumored to have survived the fall above though many people have heard about it, nobody who Mountain Walkers have garnered a celebrity-like
ground without the protection of bunkers and fallout isn’t a ‘Walker has ever seen a Gathering with their reputation among certain factions of the region.
shelters. Whether or not this is true is subject to own eyes. Despite their renown, Mountain Walkers rarely stay
debate, but what cannot be disputed is the ‘Walkers’ Some rumors about the Gathering claim that it’s in one location for long. Some observers claim the
knowledge of the surface world. Mountain Walkers some kind of religious rite in which the ‘Walkers ‘Walkers keep on the move to avoid representatives
possess a wealth of knowledge about the Northwest. pray to old gods and offer up sacrifices in return for from major factions who try to seek them out in hope
They know secret paths through the mountains that
- Duncan Clark
- Duncan Clark
Occupation and Background: Slaver, Ritual taking food, weapons, equipment, and slaves from
Preservationist. every town they find and leaving a scant few survivors
Skills: Drive +4, Gather Information +1, Hide to fight for the scraps left behind.
+0, Intimidate +8, Knowledge (ancient lore) +2, Zorthag, however, isn’t just content to pick
Knowledge (tactics) +3, Knowledge (technology) +2, the wastelands dry. He has a master plan for the
Listen +3, Move Silently +4, Navigate +2, Search +3, occupation of all settlements in the southern portion
Speak Language (gutter talk), Spot +4, Survival +3. of the Northwest. Once he has enslaved the human
Feats: Armor Proficiency (light), Armor Proficiency population, taken their supplies, and bred them out
(medium), Armor Proficiency (heavy), Personal of existence, he plans to move north and repeat the
Firearms Proficiency, Post Apocalyptic Technology, process until there are none left to challenge his
Simple Weapon Proficiency, Toughness, Vehicle authority.
Expert, Weapon Focus (Jackhammer Mk3A1). Like other Pale Rider rulers before him, Zorthag’s
Mutations and Defects: Gigantism, Bizarre ancestors were members of an ill-fated Foundation
Pigmentation. expedition sent to the Northwest almost 70 years ago.
Possessions: Advanced metal armor, Jackhammer Zorthag himself is evidence that the civilization and
Mk3A1, 20 rounds of 12-gauge ammunition, organization of these ancestors has been lost in the
fragmentation grenade, two light rods, survival kit, car years since the Riders’ desertion. SQ Bloodthirsty Cry, Chaps & Chains +3, Death Cry,
or motorcycle with trappings, various other gear and Horrifying Kill, No Survivors, Robust, Second Wind,
personal possessions. Zorthag (Post Apocalyptic Hero 1/Tough Hero Wasteland Lore; AL Pale Riders; SV Fort +11, Ref +8,
4/Raider 10): CR 15; Large humanoid; HD Will +4; AP 13; Rep +8; Str 14, Dex 14, Con 18, Int
1d8+14d10+70; hp 152; Mas 21; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; 10, Wis 12, Cha 8.
People of Note Defense 34, touch 19, flat-footed 34 (+9 class, -1 Occupation and Background: Slaver, Ritual
size, +9 advanced metal armor, +3 chaps & chains, Preservationist.
Zorthag +4 natural armor); BAB +13; Grap +18; Atk +14 Skills: Drive +6, Hide -2, Intimidate +17,
Zorthag is a fearsome mutant who has claimed all melee (1d3+2, nonlethal, unarmed) or +14 melee Knowledge (ancient lore) +4, Knowledge (tactics)
lands east of Burns as his own. His Pale Riders roam (1d6+2, rifle butt); Full Atk +14/+9/+4 melee (1d3+2 +13, Knowledge (technology) +5, Listen +3, Move
the entirety of the Desiccated Wastes, imposing nonlethal, unarmed), or +15/+10/+5 ranged (2d8, Silently +4, Navigate +2, Search +3, Speak Language
Zorthag’s will on the settlers of the scorched lands, Jackhammer Mk3A1); FS 5 ft. by 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; (Gutter Talk), Spot +4, Survival +3.
Chapter 4: They say that this area was, at one time, one of the most beautiful places on the planet. People came from
all around, just to visit for a few days, just to look at the mountains and the waterfalls. I see some of that
beauty here and there; trying to come back from the abyss that humanity pushed it into. Still, the damage
Places of has been done, and even though some of the plant life is growing back, I wonder if this place will ever be
what it once was.
Fires raged out of control and the bodies of the warming caused by Ancient-era industries), a bitter
Geographic Overview dead were left to rot were they lay. Enemy bombing
campaigns reduced entire stretches of fertile soil into
season that brings with it a plague of radiation-laced
snow and temperatures that regularly drop to thirty
The Northwest was once a lush region, filled with
fields of craters. As if that weren’t enough, the war degrees below zero. This “arctic season” lasts for
forests that spread out as far as the eye could see,
chiefs of the world, in their infinite madness, resorted many months at a time, and it is sometimes up to
covering the mountains and valleys in a blanket of
to nuclear and chemical weapons. two years before a thaw begins. The locals call this
pine and evergreen. Rivers and streams crisscrossed
Chemical and biological attacks wreaked havoc varying period “the time of the white death,” because
the land, nourishing wide varieties of plant and
on all life in the Northwest, blanketing the land in a an average of thirty percent of the total population of
wild life. Towards the end of the twentieth century,
poisonous fume that left man and beast choking and the Northwest’s remaining settlements can die from
however, the rape of the natural world was well
sprawled on their backs, twitching and flailing in their exposure during these periods.
underway.
death spasms like bugs in a pool of pesticide. Due to the proximity to the North Pacific, during
By the time the Fall came, a large portion of the
Tactical nuclear weapons found their targets the warmer seasons people see regular rain – but as
wilderness of the great Northwest had been destroyed.
in the major naval bases and strategic support with the few other places on the Twisted Earth that see
Once-clean rivers and streams were polluted and
facilities of Puget Sound, the nuclear silos dotting any appreciable precipitation, little of this water can
became unsafe for consumption. The air had become
the most isolated corners of eastern Washington, be used without first running it through some sort of
a noxious soup of toxins, unfit to breathe for extended
and (especially) the Umatilla Gas Repository in purification system, because the latent toxicity is so
periods of time. For human beings, life in bunkers
North Eastern Oregon, one of the world’s largest high. Sometimes the rains are so corrosive that they
and bio-domes had become a firm, unyielding reality.
storage facilities for chemical warfare munitions. The actually “burn”. People who have been caught out in
Projects to reclaim areas of the wilderness were
weapons did their jobs well, obliterating their targets one of these “corrosion storms” often bear terrible
initiated, but it was much too little, much too late. The
– along with countless millions of innocent souls. The rashes on their bodies for days, even weeks at a time.
damage had already been done, and things were about
radiation swelled and rose into the atmosphere, riding “Rad-tornadoes” are an all too common occurrence
to get worse.
the winds east from the hulk of smoking ruin that was in the wastelands of southeastern Oregon. When the
once Seattle; a biblical creeping doom that left death wind whips down out of the radiation-blasted areas
The Ravages Of War and disease in the wake of its fallout. Indeed, it was
as if the four horsemen of the apocalypse raged across
of the Pure Lands (carrying with it radiated particles
from the Fall), it sometimes gets funneled into the
The invasion of the United States visited new horrors
upon the environment. The initial battles of the war the Northwest in those final days. canyons and valleys of the region. When this happens,
were fought with conventional weapons; the first “rad-tornadoes” form and go howling across the
land, destroying everything in their path. The debris
waves of artillery and bombs pummeled and cracked
the surrounding countryside as man fought machine.
Weather they hurl out into the land is also radiated and causes
The weather in the Northwest can be unpredictable. even more long-term damage to the environment.
Small towns and rural communities were destroyed
Every five years or so, the Northwest sees particularly Settlements caught in these freak storms don’t often
and left in smoking ruin as the war machine marched
heavy winters (a bizarre side effect of the global live to see another one.
on.
Once upon a time, the coastline of the Northwest Deep below the Sea-Tac Bio-Dome there exists a city
was counted among the most awe inspiring stretches which is known only to a few hundred individuals.
of land on the planet. Now it is a parched, desolate The “stronghold”, as it is called by the people who
region dotted with the wreckage of numerous ships live there, was once an attraction for the people who
abandoned in the nightmare years of the Fall. All lived in Seattle and the surrounding areas before
Feathers" for Canyonville to become a ghost town. along the coastline and even farther out, some say, the Great Fall. In the late 19th century, this old city,
Most people simply gave up and wandered off into are small boats, large boats, and even massive known as the “Seattle Underground”, was a den of
the wilderness, or committed suicide. Others became cargo freighters; some of these long ago beached prostitution and other seedy activities. When the
so lethargic in their depression that it was as if they themselves, others litter the waterways just below the Great Fire of 1889 - and later the bubonic plague
had just "wasted away". Their own initial isolationist surface, while some even say one or two continue to - struck Seattle, this entire portion of the town was
policy served to choke the people, depriving them of drift out at sea. condemned. In time, a newer, cleaner Seattle was
the hope they needed to guide them through the dark This region isn’t completely devoid of life, rebuilt on top of the ruins, the old city entombed as
days in the battle. however. Various species of mutated creatures such as sewers and underground passages beneath the streets
In the end, nobody survived. the giant sand crab and giant sand worms make their above.
Many years later, when people began to creep home in the dunes and dry coves of the Shipwreck Over the years, what was left of the Seattle
out of shelters in the mountains of the Cascade and Coast, preying on inattentive travelers. Zug-wa and underground became little more than a tourist
Coast Ranges, a band of refugees came to settle in the blood whales also make these waters their home. attraction, though by virtue of its sheer size it had
rundown casino. Not understanding exactly what the With the exception of the Columbia, the once large, always been home to a sizeable population of
place had been used for, they began to covet the chips swift rivers that fed into the ocean here are now little homeless, drug traffickers, and other “illegals”. When
they found strewn about the place as a sort of treasure. more than lazy streams that have a habit of going the state-of-the-art Bio-Dome was built at the turn of
As trading caravans moved through the region, some dry for months. Long stretches of time separate each the century, much of Seattle as it existed was leveled
of them stopped at the town (which the people came rainstorm, though in time the rains to make room
to call "Seven Feathers" after the casino). The traders, do gain enough strength to fill the for the new
most of them from Tillamook, believed the stories waterbeds once more, allowing transportation
that the people of Seven Feathers told them about the what little life struggles along the grids and
"chips" being treasure from the ancient days before vast beaches a chance to flourish ultra high-rise
the Fall. for a short time. buildings that
Seven Feathers, as it exists today, is a free The Columbia, however, is still would have to
community on the far frontier of the Lost Paradise a fairly large waterway, flowing house millions
that deals primarily in trade with the few neighboring all the way out to the Poisoned of people in a
homesteads in the region (though none of these has Sea. Every so often, an expedition comparatively
a population over 30 people, some settlements near of brave souls will venture out small space.
Seven Feathers generate enough goods to warrant beyond the western horizon to map Just like a
trading this far south from Tillamook lands), as well the region and look for treasure in century before,
as the rare traveler who comes over the mountain the land locked ships. None have the 20th century
passes and along the old interstate that still runs returned. city was built
through town.